When I started watching 1923, I was constantly wondering if the ensemble based some of their performances on the Yellowstone cast considering many of their characters are related. Notably, I’ve always thought Alex had a lot of Beth Dutton in her. So, I decided to ask the actress who plays the woman who just married into the Dutton family, Julia Schlaepfer, about this comparison, and she had an iconic response.
So, here’s the situation. We don’t actually know if Alex is related to Beth, because we don’t know if she and Spencer continue the Dutton legacy. However, there’s no doubt that the two characters are comparable. They’re both fiery, they’re both headstrong, they’re both fiercely independent, and they’re both beloved by fans. Therefore, when I told this to Schlaepfer during our chat about Season 2 ahead of its premiere on the 2025 TV schedule, she responded with:
Totally. I’m so honored. I love when people tell me Alex has Beth in there, because I love Beth.
While I don’t think Alex smokes as many cigarettes as Beth and I doubt she knows anything about ranching (yet), they are both outspoken, confident, no-nonsense people.
While we don’t know if Alex is the great ancestor of Kelly Reilly’s character, as Schlaepfer pointed out, there are 100% intentional parallels, which is incredible, as she explained:
We don’t know, and the audience doesn’t know, who’s ultimately the legacy for the Dutton family, but it is such an epic, awesome, special world to be a part of. So absolutely, I think from the beginning, we were all kind of like, ‘Oh, she’s got that fiery Beth thing.’ And so, I mean, it’s the way it’s written. Taylor [Sheridan] just writes it so beautifully.
I have a feeling we’ll be seeing even more of that “firey Beth thing” in Season 2 too. With Alex and Spencer being separated and winter hitting the Duttons hard, challenges are inevitable. And like Beth, Schlaepfer’s character is ready to fight her way through it.
We saw that happen in Season 1, as the actress explained below:
Absolutely, I wanted to make sure that she could stand on her own two feet. And Season 1, I would fight back all the time and be like, ‘Spencer doesn’t need to save her this time, she can do it herself.’ And so, yeah, it’s fun to think about those things.
Isn’t that iconic? I love that she would fight back and let Alex save herself. It’s very Beth-coded. Also, like Beth, Alex is committed to her loved ones, especially Spencer, and she seems to be willing to do just about anything to find and protect him.
Now, the question is: Did Beth inherit these qualities from Alex? Alex and Spencer may be the great-grandparents of Beth, Kayce, Jamie (kind of) and Lee. However, we don’t know that for sure. It’s also possible that Elizabeth and Jack are the direct ancestors of the main Yellowstone characters. However, no matter what, there’s no denying the Beth that lives in Alex.
To see this comparison I’m absolutely obsessed with, you can stream 1923 – which will begin dropping new episodes on Sunday, February 23 – with a Paramount+ subscription and Yellowstone with a Peacock subscription. Trust me, I’m pretty sure you’ll immediately be able to see that “firey Beth thing” in Alex, just like Julia Schlaepfer and I do.